Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Sept. 28-30) -- Cowboys' Game 4 dips along with new Nielsen population estimates

10/01/18 12:00 PM

By ED BARK@unclebarkycom on TwitterThe Dallas Cowboys may have saved their season with Sunday’s dramatic 26-24 win over the visiting Detroit Lions on new kicker Brett Maher’s last second field goal.

Their ratings didn’t show it, though, although newly released downturns in D-FW’s Nielsen population estimates were a contributing factor.

Last season’s Game 4, also a noon starter on Fox, averaged 981,599 total viewers and 407,301 in the advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-old age range. Dallas lost that one, 35-30, to the visiting Los Angeles Rams.

Sunday’s win, which ran from noon to 2:59 p.m. on Fox, drew 970,043 total viewers and 362,304 within the 18-to-49 realm. Here’s an asterisk, though. The new Nielsen estimates say that each D-FW rating point is worth 70,293 viewers, down from the previous year’s 71,221. The 18-to-49 values also are reduced, from 31,206 viewers per rating point to the new 30,192. Cord-cutting marches on.

Later in the day, NBC’s Sunday Night Football matchup between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers had 492,051 total viewers and 226,440 in the 18-to-49 demographic. Both numbers easily led all prime-time TV attractions.

On Saturday, the season premiere of NBC’s Saturday Night Live, with Matt Damon playing embattled Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh in the opening sketch, pulled in 182,762 total viewers and 66,422 in the 18-to-49 motherlode. Both tallies fell short of ABC’s prime-time college football matchup between Ohio State and Penn State, which the Buckeyes narrowly won with a big comeback. The game drew 224,938 total viewers and 87,557 in the 18-to-49 demographic.

Friday’s biggest scorer, Fox’s debut of Last Man Standing a year after ABC canceled it, rolled to 330,377 total viewers from 7 to 7:30 p.m. before the network’s premiere of The Cool Kids made a solid showing with 231,967 viewers to also win its time slot.

CBS’ returns of Hawaii Five-0 and Blue Bloods then took over with respective totals of 196,820 and 260,084 viewers.

The night’s prime-time winners in the 18-to-49-year-old demo were the Fox/Fox4 lineup of Last Man Standing, The Cool Kids, Hell’s Kitchen and the 9 p.m. local newscast.

NBC5’s 7 p.m. gubernatorial debate between incumbent Republican Greg Abbott and Democratic challenger Lupe Valdez lagged with 84,352 total viewers and 18,115 in the 18-to-49 measurement. In contrast, the previous Friday’s NBC5 U.S. Senate debate between Ted Cruz and Beto O’Rourke had 284,884 total viewers and 59,291 in the 18-to-49 realm.

Finally, here are Friday’s local news derby results.

CBS11 ran first in total viewers at 10 p.m., while Fox4 drew the most 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 swept the 6 a.m. competitions and NBC5 did likewise at 5 p.m. The 6 p.m. golds went to NBC5 in total viewers and Fox4 with 25-to-54-year-olds.